UKAC - 70cm leg tomorrow evening

A reminder than the RSGB's 70cm UKAC activity contest is on Tuesday evening this week from 1900-2130z. Last month was very quiet, but usually there is quite a bit of activity. Even with my 5W pep and an omni antenna for 2m I can usually work moderate distances.

Sunspots and 10m - Mon July 11th 2016

Solar flux is 94 and sunspot number 46 (K=3). The forecast for 10m F2 propagation remains "poor".

Paraguay on 10m WSPR - F2 at last

10m WSPR this evening

ZP4KFX (10277km) in Paraguay has copied my 500mW 10m WSPR this evening several times. I assume this is F2 although it could be Es and F2.

UPDATE 1758z: So far, he has copied me 8 times and as strong as -15dB S/N.

UPDATE 1844z:  So far, ZP4KFX (10277km) has spotted me 23 times on 10m WSPR at up to -8dB S/N. We almost have a pipe!

6m Es all day

Well it is only 1745z but already there have been extensive 6m Es openings right across Europe with my 1W ERP signal being widely reported. So far, I have not been spotted outside of Europe, although I remain ever hopeful!

BBQ weather? - NOT amateur radio

Sunset

Last evening we went to some friends for a BBQ. In all, there were 8 people there. This was the sunset over their back garden. It stayed dry, but like the rest of our summer here in the UK, the weather was mixed. Although the BBQ was cooked outside, we ate indoors.

Early Es

Both on 10m WSPR and 6m JT65, I am seeing evidence of early Es. This is a good sign. It is good to see I am being spotted already in Spain and Portugal on 6m JT65 and in northern Spain on 10m WSPR.

Sunspots and 10m - Sun July 10th 2016

Solar flux is 92 and sunspot number 63 (K=2). The forecast for 10m F2 propagation remains "poor". Despite the forecast this is an improving solar situation in the short-term. Overall, things are still sliding, but we are seeing improving short-term conditions due to the sun's rotation bringing more active regions into view.

QRP and QRP Club

More from Oleg:

Dear Club 72 members and friends,
72 QRP Net (Rendez-Vous) weekly report (July 4 to July 10, 2016)
Visitors of the week: R1OA, UT8NR, UF6V/RX3PR, RV3GM, UA1ADF, RA1M/mm, US3EN, UR5EFD, UR0ET, Z35M, UA1CEG, LA8BGA, UR7VT, RX3DIT, RU3NJC, US5ERQ
RX3DIT entered in the Honor Frequenters list
see full Visitors and Frequenters lists - www.club72.su
72! Oleg RV3GM / KH6OB "Mr. 72"

Stroke - NOT amateur radio

Every now and then, I like to update readers on the after-effects of my stroke. After nearly 3 years I seem to be on a plateau now feeling giddy most of the time, my voice is poor, getting tired very quickly and feeling sick (slightly) nearly all the time. Drinking liquids is still hard. On the positive side, most things work and I can drive. Life carries on.

After all this time, I was expecting to be better. Sadly, I now have to learn to accept these disabilities are permanent. Things may still improve, but progress is likely to be very slow.

PA0RDT mini-whip

Several people use this very compact antenna on LF and MF for RX. It is an active antenna for receive only. I am thinking of buying one. There was an interesting article on http://www.amateurradio.com/ about optimum height mounting.